In a perfectly sane world, the Bob Costas blowback experience would have convinced other sportscasters to STFU on guns. Here in the real world, though, Sports Illustrated writer Peter King boldly goes where Bob-oh went before. Specifically, King feels compelled to share his feelings about the failed Senate background check bill in his “non-football thoughts of the week.” Which include this little [non-Denver] nugget: “No matter what side of the issue you fall on (and for the life of me, I need one sane explanation on what is wrong with thoroughly checking the background of someone who walks into a store to buy a potential weapon of mass murder), you need to read the op-ed piece former Congresswoman Gabby Gifford wrote after the shameful display in the Senate the other day.” Right. Giffords wrote it. But wait! There’s more . . .
b. You go, Gabby. She wrote: “I’m furious. I will not rest until we have righted the wrong these Senators have done, and until we have changed our laws so we can look parents in the face and say: We are trying to keep your children safe.”
c. Come on: Tell me one good reason the gun lobby in this country should make the laws of the land instead of so many gun-lobby-intimidated, soon-to-be-cast-out Senators who shamed their names last week.
d. Now, those of you boiling over right now because I am so ill-informed and so left-wing and such a hater of the Second Amendment (which I am absolutely not), say something to the parents of the murdered Newtown children, whose deaths prompted exactly zero federal action to prevent more mass murders of innocents in innocent public places in the future.
e. I knew you couldn’t think of anything.
In the never-ending game of curmudgeonly condescension, I call that a home run. Judging from the comments section underneath the post, it’s an unforced error. Anyway, when it comes to debating gun rights, King ain’t got game. Who knew?